The Silent Storm
by Anagnos
Summary: Cold Time is just as hard for predators as it is for the prey. For trio of carnivores this one appears to be their most challenging yet—and it turns even worse when they must brave a ferocious storm. However, this unexpected turn of events might assist their cause to success to live another day—or it might turn out to be their downfall...


**The Silent Storm**

Nighttime developed further ahead of the trio along the path they had begun to travel when the Bright Circle was high on the sky, was now replaced with the annual Night Circle, which hovered almost stalkingly over them. Their surroundings were eerily silent, no soul around them in this lonely landscape. Only sounds accompanying them were their own footsteps, which left crisp traces behind them and their ragged, tired breaths. It was like they were the only souls to have ever walked these lands, yet the tracks of a stray hollowhorn proved otherwise. The trio of sharpteeth had been tracking it for awhile now, with no end in sight. The long shadows of the evening had long since dissolved into the gathering darkness that was around them, the air cooled around them. This had been their toughest Cold Time yet in their entire lives, and it only seemed to get worse by the day. Thud couldn't remember when was the last time that he'd had such a hard time in the Mysterious Beyond. The entire area in where they currently were at was covered in White Ground Sparkles, the once green and fertile land had turned into an empty and hellish environment. This was not new to Thud, he knew exactly what the Cold Time brought with it, but this situation was hopeless. The last time when they had eaten themselves full was just before the Cold Time had begun again. Since that day they had barely even been able to hunt herds of leaf-eaters for a long time and because of that they had been forced to eat scraps on more than one occasion, and it showed very well. They were lot thinner than before, which was alarming. It was something that was starting to infuriate the green fast biter considerably, but he knew that complaining about it would hardly make the situation better at all. So instead of resulting into petty arguments in his head, he focused on his companions forms for exchange.

''How long do we have to travel before we find this blasted sapsucker already?''

It was more of a complaint than a question, but Thud did not want to anger Red Claw any further more than he already was, so he stayed quiet in hopes that the big two-footer would just forget the conversation, but all of his hopes were squashed when his brother opened his mouth.

''Perhaps it's just on the other side of this slope? All of these White Ground Sparkles are making it difficult to sniff anything.''

''Did I ask anything from you, Screech?'' Red Claw growled to the blue fast biter behind him.

''Well, no. But-'' Thud slapped his head with his tail to interrupt him. When his brother turned around to face him, Thud gave him a look that said; _are you stupid?_ _Be quiet or you get us both killed. _Screech got the message and stayed silent after that. Red Claw snorted and turned around and begun to trek forward again. When the two-footer was far enough from the fast biter brothers, he turned to him and whispered to him harshly. _''Are you completely out of your mind?'' _An expression of embarrassment was starkly visible on his dark features, despite the darkness of the night. _''I'm sorry, okay. I wasn't thinking clearly.'' _

''_Obviously.'_' Thud left it at that, and continued to follow Red Claw. He really wasn't in any mood to argue with his brother right now, considering their current condition. He heard his brother follow behind him shortly after along the path. ''Look, Thud. I really am sorry. I'm just so hungry that I can't even think straight anymore.'' Thud understood his brother's blight very well, and chose not to antagonize Screech any further. ''I get it. I'm hungry too. But you have got to keep your head in the game, Screech. Remember what dad taught us?''

''All too well. He made sure that lesson would stay in our heads.'' Screech deadpanned in bored tone. ''Then you'd do best to remember that lesson.'' Thud heard his brother sigh in remark.

''Yeah, I'll try to do my best, Thud.''

''What are you two loitering back there? Come here. I think I've found something.''

''Come on, let's go see what the big guy found.'' They both started to sprint along the pathway that led them into an large clearing, soon enough the large form of Red Claw became visible for both of them. He was standing beside a frozen lake, inspecting and sniffing a new series of footprints, footprints that did not belong to the hollowhorn they had been tracking for the duration of the whole day now. Thud inspected the tracks himself, but they were messy enough that he could not say for certain to whom or what they belonged to. Red Claw's booming voice interrupted him from his thoughtful ponderings at that moment.

''The tracks of the hollowhorn end near the slope behind us. These are all here is.''

''How could the hollowhorn just disappear like that?'' Screech asked in confusion.

''Maybe it didn't. We were far enough from it in the first place, any tracks it might have left behind are probably long gone by now.'' Thud exclaimed to his companions in a undisputed tone.

He saw Red Claw nod in acceptance of that response, it seemed the two-footer was thinking the exact same thing that Thud himself was, but Red Claw would hardly never admit it outloud to anyone, after all it was very unusual for the two-footer to offer compliments to anyone. Thud only shared those with his brother and even then it was very infrequent custom. It was strictly professional when it came to dealing with Red Claw. Of course, he knew this was not going to be a habitual thing, so he let it slide.

Red Claw snarled in rising anger, no doubt he was furious that their prey was lost forever by now, but they still had a chance to salvage this hunt and turn it in their favor.

''What's the plan then? Do we try to pinpoint where the hollowhorn went?'' Screech joined in on the conversation.

''No, forget the blasted hollowhorn. These tracks look like they could be from either a threehorn or a spiketail. They are much better food than some measly hollowhorn.''

_And also more dangerous than a hollowhorn, _Thud added inwardly. He didn't dare to voice his concern to Red Claw about this matter. When the two-footer set his mind for doing something, it was nearly impossible to change his mind about the cause, and Thud did not want to antagonize him enough so that he'd end up as Red Claw's snack later if this whole plan fell apart.

''So we go after them? Do we even know which direction they went?''

''We do, look.'' Red Claw pointed at the tracks on the ground.

The tracks were facing the opposite side of the path that they had arrived here from. There seemed to be more than one set of footprints, but it was difficult to say for sure. Spiketails or threehorns almost never traveled on their own, then again, what other choice did they have? Keep looking around for prey and hope that they actually would find something before they succumbed to starvation? Thud knew that was not an option. They wouldn't last a day longer without any kind of nutrition. If they couldn't find anything tonight, they would never see next rise of the Bright Circle again. Except Red Claw perhaps, Thud suspected that if he had to resort to devouring his companions in order to survive he would certainly do just that. Despite their arrangement with Red Claw when it came to hunting together, the relationship between the fast biters and the two-footer was not a very pleasant one. They had originally joined together for mutual benefit. So if this thing went to south, Thud and Screech would be on their own, and Thud was not willing to let that happen.

''Then we follow the tracks, and hopefully we can catch up to them in time.'' Screech uttered tiredly.

The trio started to move toward their new destination in hopes of a successful hunt, oblivious of the approaching storm brewing in the distance behind them, moving ever so closer to their current location.

* * *

''Angar, are you sure the way we are going is the right one?''

Angar turned to face his subordinate with an annoyed look, which left no doubt what his sentiments were toward the younger spiketail at the current period. Angar didn't need anyone to dispute his leadership in their current challenging predicament. He decided to confront the brownish spiketail now before anyone else in the herd started to rouse similar thoughts in their minds.

''I'm sure, Halmar. If we keep going this way, we'll reach the Great Valley in few days.''

''But I still feel that if we would-''

''Which one of us has been in the valley before, Halmar?'' Angar interrupted the brown spiketail before he could finish his sentence. He really didn't want to deal with Halmar's sceptical tendencies. He had joined their herd last Cold Time when his original herd had been attacked by sharpteeth and he left as the only survivor. Despite his newfound loyalty towards the herd that had taken him in skeptically, he still occasionally distrusted Angars' decisions when it came to leading the herd to the magnificent place that was the Great Valley. He must've still been those few individuals who didn't believe such a sanctuary even existed. But Angar knew it was true, for he had seen it with his own eyes when the herd had briefly stopped there to rest on their last visit. ''I will not accept this kind of insubordination from you again, are we clear about that?'' Angar's tone was firm and he directed his strict gaze toward Halmar until he received a nod from the brown spiketail in confirmation.

The herd once again resumed their trek forward along the path that led through a mountain area with forests nearby. Still, the previous discussion was still very much in Angar's mind, and he suspected that given enough time, Halmar would continue to pester him with his silly questions and interruptions. Maybe accepting him into the herd had been a mistake on his part, so far the spiketail in question had hardly brought them anything goodwill. Then again Angar could always just banish him from the herd if it suited him. Angar would remind himself to visit this matter later, for now they had other more severe concerns ranging from their journey to protecting the herd from dangerous carnivores. They would not be the only ones out on these lands after all, they would have to keep an eye out for their surroundings in order to prevent being caught by surprise. Angar turned his head to observe the valley they currently were residing at, watching the treelines for any possible predators lurking around in hiding. For a brief moment he thought he saw something move among the trees in the forest opposite of their position, but after a careful look and nothing out of the ordinary striking his eyesight, he concluded it was just his own imagination playing tricks on him, he hadn't had a good nights sleep in ages after all. Once they got to the Great Valley he could rest as long as he wanted, and he intended to take full advantage of that once they arrived at their destination, their sanctuary, and their final hope.

* * *

''That was a close one.'' Screech remarked to his brother beside him. Both of them were laying on the ground in prone positions, watching the spiketail herd mingle around the surrounding valley with interest. They had indeed managed to caught up with the leaf-eater herd in the end, and Red Claw had sent the two of them to gather knowledge about their soon-to-be victims - Thud hoped at the very least of that outcome. They had nearly been discovered by one of the spiketails when Screech had accidentally stumbled on a lonely root that was sticking out of the ground. Thankfully the spiketail hadn't evidently noticed them at all and moved quickly on, and that was good for them. But Thud would make sure that something like that wouldn't happen again. They had gotten lucky this time, but anything could happen in this world to anyone, all it took was one misstep and you were dead.

''I swear to you, Screech, that if you do that again I'm going to gut you myself. You do realize that you almost gave us away?'' Thud growled in hostility to his brother about his aberration that could've ended both of them before this hunt had even begun.

''Relax, they didn't notice us, no harm done.''

''That's beside the point! You cannot-'' Thud didn't finish the sentence. If it weren't for their current task at hand, he would surely strike his brother with his claws to remind him about the wisdoms of life. Thud closed his eyes and breathed slowly to calm his rising nerves. Being angry at Screech would not make things any better now, but he could not just let this occurrence slide and wade away without a fight.

'You act like a hatchling on it's first hunting lesson, Screech.''

''Okay, if that's the way you think of me, fine then. You do know that I'm sorry for real, right?

Screech importuned his distressed and perhaps slightly even seething brother carefully.

''Let's just forget about it for now and focus on our current task at hand, shall we?'' Both of them stayed silent after that, observing the herd of spiketails moving further away from them. They would have to follow them and report any findings they could uncover to Red Claw. Silently, the two fast biters started to creep from the darkness of the forest after the leaf-eaters. They would have to do this very carefully, one misstep was enough to grant them an early access to the Great Beyond with their ancestors. Thud observed the spiketails further, and to his delight he took notice of their movement - it was slow, probably because of the cold or lack of food.

He even noticed that some of the leaf-eaters were already beginning to visibly tire, the spiketails would not last long without nourishment, like the current dilemma Thud and his companions found themselves trapped in. Thud turned to his brother and to his satisfaction he noticed that Screech had already taken notice of the same case as he had. This was feasible enough to do, although they would have to be extra careful nevertheless, even in their weakened state the spiketails would be a specially formidable threat for the trio of carnivores. They would have to play this smart in order to be successful. There simply wasn't any alternatives, either they would make it through this hunt alive and live to see another day or then this would be their last day on this world, and Thud was determined for it be the former rather than the latter.

''Come on, let's go report our findings to the boss and make a plan.'' Screech acknowledged Thud's petition with a quick nod, and together they both turned back, still ensuring that their presence was not detected by the spiketails, and vanished into the cold and dark night.

* * *

''So let me make sure that I understand.''

Thud regarded the speaker, who happened to be his brother, in obvious boredom. They had went through the duo's discoveries for a few times already in order to make the best of it for the upcoming hunt.

''You want us to attack a herd of spiketails in our current weakened state, and expect to live through it?''

''That is precisely what I meant, Screech. Don't tell me that you're a scaredy egg?'' Red claw asked the blue fast biter in growing annoyance. Thud could hardly blame him, for he was also promptly beginning to lose his patience.

Screech's composure began to falter rapidly, he seemed to notice his mistake of speaking against the big two-footer just now. Thud hoped he was going to fix that soon or there might not be anything left of his brother. ''N-no, sir. Just making sure that we understand the plan before we initiate it.'' Thud took notice of Screech's very submissive tone, but he could hardly blame his brother for that, were it him facing the grim gaze of Red Claw he would be just as frightened. Thud hoped that Screech would take notice that the entire night he had been interrupting the two-footer, and it hardly raised Red Claw's opinion of him. Though he was always like this when he was hungry, even back when the two of them were just little hatchlings, still very much dependant on their parents.

Red Claw growled at the fast biter in front of him and that was message clear enough to make Screech back up and shut his mouth audibly.

''To answer your previous interrupting inquiry Screech, that is not exactly the plan I was envisioning in my mind just now.''

''Oh? What then?'' Thud pondered the question both audibly and internally.

''There are far too many of them for us to take on, I maybe a full-grown two-footer but even I can't take that many in my current state alone. Which is were you two come in on the play.''

Thud didn't like the sound of that. Whatever the big two-footer had planned for them it was hardly anything good, Thud had come to learn that lesson the hard way in the past.

''I see you are confused. Tell me something, Thud. When you were tracking them earlier did you notice anything interesting about them?''

''Yes, one of the spiketails, the apparent leader of them, almost discovered us while we were spying on them.'' Thud directed his stern glare toward his brother's direction and the other fast biter turned his head down in apparent shame. ''We noticed that they moved slowly and seem to be in a precarious position like we are.''

''So what does that tell you?''

Thud contemplated it over for a minute, until he grasped what Red Claw meant by that.

''They're too weak to concentrate on their current moment entirely, the only one who seems to be able to do that is the spiketail that almost discovered us, and if I'm right about him being the leader, he will be tough one to beat.''

''All the more reason why he should be taken out first,'' Screech remarked. ''if they are as ineffectual as you say, they will be an easy prey without a leader.''

''Exactly,'' Red Claw stated. ''and we're going to take full advantage of that.''

''It's worth a try at least. I mean what else can we do? This is our _only_ chance,'' Thud voiced to his companions. ''if we fail here, that's the end of it.''

''Then it looks like we have agreed on a plan.'' Red Claw left no room to argue about the matter.

''And the leaf-lickers be damned. Those pesky creatures won't know what hit them until it's far too late.''

* * *

''Alright, herd. We'll rest here for awhile, keep your eyes open for any dangers, I don't want us to be caught off-guard by anything.'' Angar announced loudly enough so that everyone would hear him loud and clear. He saw some members of his herd lay down to rest, and understandably so for they had been traveling for a long while now, but they would still have a long journey ahead of them. He called his deputies aside from everyone else and gave them their orders.

''I need few spiketails to check the entire perimeter with caution, remember: we may not be the only ones out here.'' His deputies acknowledged his order and they went their separate ways. Angar himself went to find his mate and child among the assembled spiketails. Eventually he found them near a rockwall resting after long night's journey that would still continue for awhile. ''Dear, how are you and Tippy doing?''

''We're doing fine, Angar. Tippy is just tired from all the walking. Cannot we rest here for tonight and continue our voyage tomorrow?''

''I wish we could, my love. But we still have to keep going a bit further, this area is not safe enough to spend the night.'' At least Angar didn't have to worry about his child starving just yet. The herd had made sure to feed their young first before the adults got their equal share of the green food. Of course this did have an negative impact on them as well, in their shape Angar feared that he and the other adults wouldn't be able to protect the herd if it came to it. One more problem to their already growing difficult situation.

''Surely we'll be able to protect ourselves, dear. There are enough of us here.''

''But we aren't in our full strength, dear. That is a _very _big fragility for us. If a sharptooth were to come in here right now, I don't have enough faith that we would all survive it.''

''But… there has to be something we can do. There always is.''

Angar was sorrowful for making his mate even more distressed than she already was, but he wouldn't dare lie to her either. He had learned that lying to her was a very ludicrous idea.

''I'm doing the best I can here, dear. But you know this is what life looks like in the Mysterious Beyond, especially during Cold Time.''

She looked down for a moment and then raised her head up again to meet her mate's eyes.

''I know that, dear. But I can't help but worry. That's what all mothers do, right?''

''I believe they do. But we'll get through this together, we always have, and always will.''

Angar nuzzled his mate to comfort her and after awhile she nuzzled him back, grateful for his support.

''Yes we will. I just hope that the Great Valley will be enough to-''

''Angar! We have big problems heading toward us!''

Angar shifted his large form to look at one of his deputies who was running toward him speedily, with a clear look of distress across his face very much visible. What was going on? Were they being under attack by sharpteeth? Angar vowed to find the answers to these questions.

''What is it, Tyro? Are we being under attack?''

The gray spiketail who went by the name Tyro, stopped in front of him, panting in fatigue.

''No, it's something else entirely. There's a big storm coming straight at us, and it will be here soon.''

Angar's eyes widened. This was indeed something he had not predicted. A storm may not be as dangerous as a sharptooth was, but they were a big threat in their on regard nonetheless.

''Can we make it out of here before it arrives? Do we have enough time to slip away?''

''No, we don't. It's almost on top of us.''

Angar's face went pale with fear.

''Ancestors help us.''

* * *

''Who's bright idea it was to venture so far from the spiketails?'' Screech remarked in annoyance.

''I hardly believe that matters much, Screech.'' Thud answered his brother.

''We could be there by now and about to sink our teeth in them!''

''Be quiet already, Screech. I grow tired of your constant rantings,'' Red Claw growled angrily.

''Are you an adult or child?''

Screech however didn't answer the retort, apparently having learned to shut his mouth when in company of a very big and pissed of two-footer. _Good._ Thud thought to himself. Even if he cared about his brother, sometimes he could be hard to deal with.

''We'll be there shortly, just few more steps and it's hunting time.'' Thud stated.

''You better pray that you're right, Thud. All that has happened definitely hasn't made me anymore patient.''

Thud knew better than to out right answer with something witty to what Red Claw had just said to him, it would not be tolerated while in his presence. Soon enough they arrived near the region where the spiketail herd had stopped to rest on their journey to whatever land they were going to, it mattered little to Thud and his companions, all they cared about was to fill their bellies full or at least enough so that they would last another day. They took a small shortcut to the valley of the spiketails by jumping over the minor hills nearby, although it was tad bit more difficult for Red Claw due to his large size, the slope however was wide enough to fit him just fine. The sight that awaited them was not what Thud had been envisioning at all; the leaf-eaters were running around and screaming loudly enough so Thud and his companions could hear them clearly enough as if they were standing right next to them. Now if only they could understand the language of the leaf-eaters it would be easier to find out why they were suddenly freaking out. Had they been discovered? Impossible, they had been extra careful in their plan to remain hidden before the strike would happen. Something else had given them a fright, and Thud didn't like uncertainties. ''Why are they freaking out? Did they discover us?'' Screech echoed his thoughts to a point.

''There's no way that would be possible. Maybe another sharptooth is nearby?'' Thud pondered.

''Whatever the case, it's ruining the hunt for us.'' Red Claw growled in frustration.

Thud looked around him in order to possibly spot the reason for the leaf-eaters odd behaviour and after turning around to face the sight before him he realized exactly what had spooked them.

''I think I know why now.'' Thud confessed.

''Well, share it with us then.'' Came the remark from Red Claw who turned to face him.

''Look there. They're not afraid because of a sharptooth. They're afraid because of that,'' Thud admitted. ''and the way it looks like it's going to be here very soon.''

The trio looked into the horizon where the approaching storm was brewing. The blizzard raged so strong that the once familiar sights of the region had been almost completely erased from the their memory by now. The snowflakes fell rapidly and the air was almost still, but it was so thick that it almost obscured the view entirely. Thud raised his hand to shield his eyes from the barrage. The anticipated coldness and the sting of snow on his snout. He wondered how they had missed such a thing in the first place, but it hardly mattered right now and Thud was sure that his companions had similar sentiments on their minds.

''We can't stay here.'' Thud told his companions.

''You're right we can't, but we can't just abandon this hunt now. Think about everything that's at stake here!'' Screech cried.

''That's correct, Screech. We can't, not after everything we've gone through,'' Thud tried to calm his brother down. ''But if we stay here, we are good as dead.''

''We just have to follow the sapsuckers. Even they are not that dumb enough to stay anywhere near here,'' Red Claw added. ''we still have a hunt to accomplish, I haven't forgotten about it either.''

''I guess that's our best bet,'' Thud grumbled. ''I hope the ancestors are guiding us now more than ever, I'm fairly certain that I speak for all of us here when it comes to making sure that we don't meet them just yet.''

''You and me both, Thud,'' Screech shouted in agreement. ''if we die, at least we go together.''

Thud grievously feared the possibility of that outcome, and for the first time since he could remember, he was utterly terrified of the forthcoming events.

* * *

''Everyone, stay calm and organized,'' Angar began his speech. ''we'll get through this together.''

The herd was still freaking out about the fierce storm that was rapidly advancing toward them faster than Angar would've liked, but he had no control over this matter. All he could control now was the best possible outcome for his herd, and he intended to do that no matter what obstacle came to his way. He needed to get them as calm and collected as he possibly could, because panicking in a situation like this would only make things worse for everyone. His words echoed enough through the herd, and they all stopped to listen.

''Listen to me now very clearly: we must leave this region right _now_. That storm will not wait for us to get far enough from here before it hits us,'' Angar loudly proclaimed. ''if we can get to the other side of this valley, there might be a safe location where we can rest and wait until this storm passes.''

He received nods of agreement from the spiketails present, but he could still detect slight uncertainty in their faces. Angar had no way of knowing if there really was a safe spot for them to wait the storm to pass them, but one thing was absolutely certain; they could not stay here, if they did, they would all surely die.

''Follow me. And stay close. If we lose someone we can't go back for them,'' Angar didn't need to specify his words: you fall behind - you're on your own. ''Move fast and efficiently.''

He looked to his mate beside him and spoke to her in a clear tone. ''That goes double for you and Tippy, dear.''

She nodded in agreement and understanding of his request. Turning to her son and whispering words of comfort to him.

''Let's go, Tippy. Stay close.'' Tippy moaned quietly in confirmation, already starting to feel the cold of the storm and the falling snowflakes around them almost penetrate their thick hides. The sensation was unbearable, the quicker they got away from this blizzard the better.

Flakes pelt against the spiketails cheeks, clinging to their hide and almost covering them completely white. Shivering teeth began to chatter amongst the herd while everyone did their best to stay as warm as they could. Angar felt his dry, aching throat from thirst and cold. The wind unbearably dreadful, discomfort arose from the beating snow drifting down at them in incredible speed. There was nothing positive about the situation the spiketails currently faced and Angar begun to dread what else might happen on this night. The gale whips each flake, so pretty on it's own, formed into a projectile that hurt the hide. No light of the stars was visible above the sky anymore, so thick was the blizzard, the sound of wind accompanying them present. Tomorrow the region would never look the same as it once did. The blizzard removed Angars' visibility and it was nearly impossible to spot the path any longer. To save his eyes from the blinding white powder Angar narrowed them until they were almost completely shut, and all the while the wind raged without a care in the world, only reducing its ferocity long enough to gather the strength for another attack. All Angar could do was hope that the storm would pass soon, all his mind could focus on was to find the most logical path to warmth, safety and into something more comfortable than the tangible snow. Suddenly he thought he heard something other than the wind in the night, something that faintly resembled a cry of anguish. Even if Angar wanted to investigate the noise he knew that there was no potential opportunity present to endeavour in such task, not in these conditions and he recalled his address to the herd very well about falling behind. With a heavy sigh he resumed his trek into the cold night, unaware of the danger that lurked behind him, that had just claimed one of his herd members life.

* * *

Thud and his companions crept cautiously after the spiketail herd in anticipation of what was coming in the near future. Thud was careful to keep enough distance to the leaf-eaters in case they decided to be thoughtful of their surroundings in the brewing storm they currently found themselves trapped in with. Screech kept close to Thud to support him in a fight if this turned ugly very fast. Red Claw brought the rear with them, careful to make sure that his footsteps wouldn't create too much noise to draw the spiketails attention to them before they wanted them to. Thud nearly lost the sight of the leaf-eaters few times, but he was agile enough to always make sure they stayed firmly in his sight, he would not want to be the reason why the leaf-eaters would make a hasty escape from the trio. He felt the coldness sink in after some period of time had passed. The wind screamed more and more with every passing moment, it almost sounded like howling, snowflakes felt like stones falling down on them, the trees were bending and moaning in the wrath of the ferocious storm. The blizzard was definitely more wicked and harsh than Thud had ever encountered before in his life.

The cold was unbearable for Thud and he was certain that his companions' didn't find it any more accommodating than he did, it was best to finish up this hunt promptly and cautiously. The faint form of the brownish spiketail in front of him became more clear by every step he took further towards his destined prey. He momentarily turned to face his companions forms, which were surprisingly hard to spot right now, but Thud did not need only just sight to pinpoint their location. He could hear their silent and calm footsteps much louder than any leaf-eater ever would, one of the perks of being on the predator side. Thud shared a knowing look first with Screech and then Red Claw, silently asking them the initiative to begin. He received nods from both sharpteeth behind him and that was the sign that he had been waiting for. He began to rapidly build up his speed for a quick and effective strike against their opponents legs. All the while Screech would join his attack from the leaf-eater's other side in order to bring the spiketail down for Red Claw to finish it off swiftly. The green fast biter pushed thoughts about the storm and coldness aside, and focused on the hunt that would save their lives, Thud felt himself sink into a state of ease, the impending challenges inevitable and he could sense them nearing.

Thud hastened his speed to match his brothers' own rate. For this to work they had to take out the leaf-eaters legs together without any issues involved. The leaf-eater, oblivious about the imminent threat to his life advancing closer and closer with every passing second. Thud could tell that this particular spiketail was still an adolescent and therefore would not be up to date with protection for oneself overall. For Thud and his companions this was the perfect circumstance in a long time since their blight had begun this Cold Time. Thud observed the spiketail for additionally longer than he needed and then gave his brother the go-ahead to commence their plan.

In tandem, Thud and Screech both begun to sprint toward the spiketail in rapid pace. When they were but a few feet away from the leaf-eater did it finally seem to notice something moving in its sphere of vision and advancing toward it in an alarming pace. The spiketail turned toward Thud and it tried to evade Thud's swipes at his feet, but hadn't apparently noticed Screech nearing it at all, and that was a fatal mistake. With a quick slash Screech cut a deep wound into the spiketail's back legs with his sharp claws. Almost without a delay the leaf-eater fell down to the cold ground with a rough drop, no longer able to hold its own weight. But still, the determination of the young spiketail was not to be underestimated lighty, and with a quick movement of his tail, tried to struck Screech hard into oblivion. Thud moved in to protect his brother from the spiketails' attack, but Thud clearly did not except what happened next: sharply the leaf-eater pushed itself up on its ruined legs, still surprisingly managing to hold him and with high-speed that both surprised and impressed Thud, whacked him across the face with its tail. Thud felt the ground beneath him after awhile had passed, and without a delay, he begun to feel the concussion in his head. It almost felt like his head was on fire, the pain was unbearable. He cringed in pain over the inflicted wound, but tried to push that away with some success.

Thud heard the sounds of the battle continue as his brother more than likely tried to attack the spiketail again with a quick slash of his claws, but this time the spiketail was ready for that. With a quick movement, the spiketail dodged Screech's attack, and Thud witnessed the leaf-eater ready its tail again for another whack, this time aimed at Screech. Thud acknowledged his brother's need for help, and pushed himself back on his feet once again and begun to pick up speed. The spiketail meanwhile was too busy dealing with Screech to pay any attention to Thud, seemingly thinking that the other fast biter to be out of the game by now.

The spiketail begun to sway its tail back and with a quick force attempted to crush Screech into a bloody pulp. Before the spiketail could act further, Thud was on him in an instant and swiftly gut the front legs open with his sharp claws. The leaf-eater cried in pain over the inflicted wounds to its legs and fell down once again to the ground, writhing in pain. But it would not suffer long for Red Claw was already making his way to the spot in quick pace. But still the spiketail refused to just lay down and die before the sharpteeth, and in vain attempted to stand up once again, only to fall back with a loud thud when the two fast biters both struck their claws into its hide again. Thud and Screed didn't have to afflict further damage to the spiketail, for its story was now well and truly over. The massive form of the Red Claw appeared in front of the assembled dinosaurs and with hasty speed Red Claw sank his sharp teeth into the withering leaf-eater's back hard. The spiketail screamed and tried to push the two-footer with its paws as if to ward off the sharptooth that was on top of him. With a final bite to the throat Red Claw finished the spiketail's struggles for live and everything abruptly fell silent.

* * *

Gleam of the afternoon sun shone almost enchantingly on the sky above, basking the region in light and warmth. The Bright Circle shone bright and high, a grand transition from the previous day's hardships and tragedy that had stroke the spiketail herd earlier. The herd was once again on the move to continue their journey toward the Great Valley in hopes of a secure environment from not only the sharpteeth that lurked around the lands that were more commonly known as the Mysterious Beyond, but also from natural threats to their way of life. But now there was one less spiketail amongst them, an adolescent who had only just recently joined their herd. Angar was in grim condition as of this very moment. He had failed to do what a leader was supposed to: protect his herd.

Halmars' death had not stricken him as hard as it had others in the herd, but it still was very much in his mind nonetheless. Angar may have not had much love for the other spiketail, he could admit that much, but still something inside him made him feel… awful to say the least. Leaders were supposed to protect those under them, even if it meant to sacrifice oneself to accomplish that task.

Despite their loss only one night ago the herd still had to keep moving forward, because if Angar let this bother him until his end came, he would certainly lose his sanity. He pushed any thoughts about the brown spiketail away from his mind and focused on the journey ahead. One way or another they would get to the Great Valley, and Angar was more determined than ever to not lose anyone else in his herd again to such tragedy, not while he was in charge.

''We'll be in the Great Valley soon,'' Angar announced to the herd in loud voice. ''Keep moving.''

''Dear, are you okay?'' Angars' mate inquired.

''I will be. I have to.'' He answered his to mate.

''They're all counting on me, and I'm not going to fail them like I did Halmar. I will make sure of that.'' His answer somewhat concerned the female spiketail, and Angar was quick to fix his mistake.

''Don't worry, dear. One day it'll be alright.'' Angar declared with new-found confidence.

''One day.''

* * *

Thud awoke during the night feeling bit cold due to the extremely cold weather outside. Despite their new-found sanctuary for the night it didn't mean they would be completely covered from the frigidity. One thing they didn't have to worry about anymore however was the storm, for it had long since passed them, but it didn't make the coldness go away immediately, it would take some time before that became reality. Thud couldn't help but ponder of the circumstances the trio at the present moment were dealing with. Yes, on the good note they were now fully fed and ready to go further in their lives since they weren't starving anymore. They had dragged the carcass of the spiketail to a nearby cave after previous night's successful hunt, it was the best possible habitat to wait until the blizzard had passed them. It was still early in the morning, so early that even the Bright Circle had not risen yet over the sky. Screech and Red Claw were still snoring loudly and the cave was filled with their sounds of deep sleep. Thuds' thoughts were constantly going around in circles, and he desperately needed time to settle those down. Realizing that he would not be able to do any of it while still at the cave, he ambled toward the opening of the cavern and stepped out into the cold night. Night came as sort of a reward of sorts to the green fast biter, it brought with a restfulness to calm down after a long day. This night however, was special from all the others. Life wasn't as full of joy as Thud sometimes hoped, but tonight, he received some of that for himself, and for that he considered to be luckier than most. The eerie deep darkness of the night would never escape his memory. He would strongly remember that while the life he lived was full of difficulties and dangers that didn't mean it couldn't be impossible to have that kind of life one day.

Outside as Thud wandered near the cave's mouth, he looked up at the clear night sky in deep thought. For him, stars had always been distant and amazing things, they were filled with endless mysteries that fascinated Thud greatly. He had taken an interest on them ever since his father had told him and his brother surreptitious tales about them. Now, Thud perceived that such little things were to be savored and relished. Tonight, he admired their beauty from afar. Walking down past the once lush and plentiful valley which had given leaf-eaters temporarily place to rest and enjoy their lives in relative safety. Maybe Thud and his companions could have that here as well someday. Thud knew that he and his companions would have many more hardships ahead of them yet during this harsh Cold Time, but for tonight, Thud was more than content to enjoy this moment of peace alone, and to ponder the prospective positive treats of life that he hoped awaited them in the near future.

* * *

**And here is my entry to the Gang of Five's March Prompt. I would like to thank those who gave this a read, while this was a lingering project for awhile due to my current life situation, I'm very much delighted that I got the chance to do this. Any kind of feedback is welcome and encouraged, especially constructive criticism. :)**


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